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Australian viewers slam ‘disrespectful’ decision to let cricket legend Mark Taylor name Olympic diving

Vaseline July 30, 2024

Olympic Games host Channel 9 has been criticised for appointing former Australian men’s cricket captain Mark Taylor to commentate on the diving.

Taylor is an experienced and respected commentator who has been covering cricket matches around the world for almost thirty years.

But his diving credentials are not that obvious, I would say honestly. In fact, they are zero.

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So it came as a shock to Australian viewers to hear Taylor’s voice speak during the women’s 3m synchronised springboard final on Saturday night (AEST), involving Australians Maddison Keeney and Anabelle Smith.

Some were more lenient with him, praising his commitment despite the fact that he himself wasn’t quite ready. But TV veteran Tim Bailey was less forgiving, especially of the network for putting him in that position.

“Mark Taylor calls the dive. A great cricketer. But a bit disrespectful to the athletes,” Bailey said.

“’Tubby’ probably doesn’t know anything about this sport. He admitted it himself. The EP (executive producer) who made this decision? Your last one. #bellyflop.”

Mark Taylor is a respected cricket commentator. Credit: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Bailey worked for Channel 10 for over 30 years as a journalist and weather presenter. He was also a radio presenter.

AAP’s Oliver Caffrey found watching Taylor commentate on the diving was like listening to comedian Billy Birmingham’s famous satirical cricket series.

“Mark Taylor commentating on the diving sounds like a piece from the 12th Man,” he said.

A number of fans also joined in the conversation.

“Former Australian cricket captain Mark Taylor commentates on the diving. Channel 9 has already crossed the line. It’s the first half hour,” someone said.

Another added: “Former Australian cricket captain Mark Taylor commentates on diving. Channel 9 are making an absolute fool of their Olympic team by giving jobs to boys and girls who don’t really belong there.”

A third joked: “Mark Taylor has long been recognised as the world’s foremost authority on Olympic competitive diving.”

There was no shortage of drama at the event, with Smith later describing how she was “screaming underwater” after being responsible for the disastrous final dive that cost her and diving partner Keeney Australia’s first medal in Paris.

Tears were shed after the defeated duo made a shocking final effort.

Anabelle Smith and Maddison Keeney were devastated after their latest diving disaster in Paris. Credit: MONKEY

They dropped from third to fifth place, while on the opening afternoon of the Games in the swimming paradise in Paris it seemed they were on their way to silver.

The normally loyal duo, who regularly stand on the podium at major championships, made a mess of their final difficult dive: two and a half somersaults with one twist in the pike position.

The 31-year-old Smith, playing her fourth game, blamed herself for a slip on the right side of the board.

“Yeah, pretty brutal. I can’t change it now, so there’s no point dwelling on it any longer,” the Melburnian said, after the tears had dried.

“Really, these things happen. It happens to the best of the best, and unfortunately today was my day. So, (I have to) not let it define me. We’ve done some pretty amazing things in our 10 years.”

Asked if her heart sank as she awkwardly lifted off the right side of the board, Smith smiled ruefully: “I was screaming underwater — I was hoping the underwater camera wasn’t on. It’s just disappointing, very disappointing.”

Trailing eventual American silver medalists Sarah Bacon and Kassidy Cook (314.64 points) by less than a point going into the final round, the Australians – who had produced the second-best dives in the previous two rounds – looked set to at least equal their performance from eight years ago in Rio, when they won bronze.

Maddison Keeney and Anabelle Smith missed out on a medal after a misstep in the final round. Credit: MONKEY

“I don’t know,” Smith shrugged when asked about the failure. “That’s diving — trying to control our bodies and turn a lot on an uneven, very bouncy board.

“I had a bad hurdle and landed on the side of the board, which obviously affected the rest of the dive. It’s just unfortunate.”

Due to their failure to hit the pool in sync, they received the worst score of the final round — 48.60 points — for a total of 292.20, putting them behind Great Britain’s bronze medalists Yasmin Harper and Scarlet Mew Jensen and fourth-placed Italians Elena Bertocchi and Chiara Pellacani.

Chinese world champions Chang Yani and Chen Yiwen (337.68) were once again in a class of their own as they won gold.

The 28-year-old three-time world champion Keeney from Perth and Smith had won silver at the world championships in Doha and expected to repeat the feat behind the dominant Chinese duo.

“Maddi and I obviously worked hard on the synchro, and we had high expectations for ourselves and obviously for other people,” Smith said.

“Of course it will affect me for a while after this, but I have to keep going. I’m not dying, so I’m fine.

“I just feel bad because I let the team down.”

– With AAP

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Australian viewers slam ‘disrespectful’ decision to let cricket legend Mark Taylor name Olympic diving

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Australian viewers slam ‘disrespectful’ decision to let cricket legend Mark Taylor name Olympic diving

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